Fireproofing textile materials



Patented Mar. 3, 1936 PATENT OFFICE I 2,032,605 FIREPRO OFING TEXTILE MATERIALS William Whitehead, Cumberland, Md., assignor to Celanese Corporation of America, a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application November 15, 1933,

, Serial No. 698,148

10 Claims.

This invention relates to a treatment of textile materials in order to improve their resistance to tire.

An object of the invention is to remove or lessen the danger of fire in textile materials either from the infiammability of the textile material or from hot or burning pieces of the material falling onto other objects.

Another object of the invention is the condithe coating be a poor conductor of current, that it be as near fireproof as possible and yet retain a smooth lubricated finish such that it will lend itself to textile processing. In accordance with this invention there is produced a fireproof yarn that has sufliciently high dielectric properties to meet the trade requirements and so finished that it readily lends itself to such textile operations as braiding as a cover for wires and wrapping as a cover for wires. It is pliable and will form the quick sharp bending actions of a braiding machine without breaking or giving rise to a hairy finish caused by part of the filaments of a yarn breaking.

This invention is applicable to any type of yarn or filament such as wool, cotton, regenerated cellulose etc. It is of particular importance however in the treatment of organic derivatives of cellulose such as the organic esters and others of cellulose. Examples of organic esters of cellulose are cellulose acetate, cellulose formate, cellulose propionate and cellulose butyrate, while examples of organic ethers of cellulose are ethyl cellulose, methyl cellulose and benzyl cellulose.

In accordance with this invention I treat yarns and filaments with an alkylolamine salt of an inorganic acid such as for example boric' acid, phosphoric acid, and hydrohalic acids such as hydro- 50 iodic and hydrobromic acids. Yarns and filaments coated with from 20% to 50%, on the '-weight of the yarn; of such salts are eificiently fireproofed yet retain their pliability and are sufficiently lubricated to withstand textile processes without peeling of the coating or gumming or (oral-es) clogging of the guides and needles used on textile machines. As a modification of this invention the yarn may be first braided or wrapped on the wire or otherwise processed as into a fabric by weaving, knitting and the like after which it is coated with the alkylolamine salt. By the latter method amounts greater than 50% on the weight of the yarn may be applied. By first processing the yarn to a fabric the interstices between the yarn are filled with the coating material. as well as forming a coating about the yarn.

Examples of the alkylolamine base of the salt to be applied as the coating are triethanolamine, diethanolamine, monoethanolamine or their substitution products. These bases may be used separately or in mixtures of two or more. In place of or in conjunction with the ethanolamine salts, quantities of the propylolamine salts may be employed.

The bromine and phosphate salts of the alkylolamines are acid by hydrolysis, and it is therefore preferable to add to the coating bath an excess of a triethanolamine thereby forming a neutral finish on the yarn. The borate salts of the alkylolamines are alkaline by hydrolysis and it is therefore preferable to add to the'coating bath an excess of the boric acid thereby forming a neutral finish on the yarn. By mixing suitable quantitles of the bromide, phosphate and borate salts of the alkylolamine base there may be formed a coating bath having a neutral reaction upon hydrolysis.

The coating may be applied to the yarn by means of wicks, furnishing rollers, discs and other similar devices or the material may be sprayed or brushed upon the yarn or fabric. The yarn after being processed to a wrapping on wire or similarly processed may be dipped into the coating material so that the yarn becomes coated and the interstices between the yarns become filled with the proofing material.

The treating bath may contain only the alkylolamine salts which may be heated so that they are reduced to the proper consistency for the method by which they are to be applied. The proofing material may also be applied to the yarn or fabric from solutions and dispersions in water and organic liquids such as methyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol or other monohydric alcohols and glycol, glycerine, diethylene glycol or other polyhydric alcohols. The solutions and dispersions may be raised to a temperature above the melting point of the alkylolamine salt.

These salts may also be applied to the filaments of organic derivatives of cellulose while they are in a swollen condition from a treatment with a swelling agent such as the thiocyanates of ammonium, sodium, potassium and calcium and the ethers and esters of glycols.

Having described my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The method of fireprooflng a textile yarn or fabric which comprises applying thereto an allgvlolamine salt of a mineral acid.

2. The method of producing a fireproof textile yarn or fabric comprising yarns of cellulose acetate which comprises applying to same an allgylolamine salt of an acid selected from the group consisting of hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acidand boric acid.

3. The method of producing a fireproof textile yarn or fabric comprising yarns of organic derivatives of cellulose which comprises applying to same a coating of a neutralizing agent and an processing the yarn to a covering for the wires and applying thereto an alkylolamine salt of an acid selected from the group consisting of hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acid and boric acid.

6. The method of producing a fireproof covering for wires which comprises forming a covering on the wires from textile yarns comprising cellulose acetate and applying to same an alkylolamine salt of an acid selected from the group consisting of hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acid and boric acid.

7. The method of producing a fireproof covering for wires which comprises forming a covering on the wires from textile yarns comprising cellulose acetate and applying to same a neutralized coating of an alkylolamine salt of an acid selected from the group consisting of hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acid and boric acid.

8. A textile product of reduced infiammability containing an alkylolamine salt of a. mineral acid.

9. A textile material comprising an organic derivative of cellulose and containing an alkylolamine salt of an acid selected from the group consisting of hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acid and boric acid.

10. A textile material comprising cellulose acetate and containing an alkylolamine salt of an acid selected from the group consisting of hydrobromic acid, phosphoric acid and boric acid.

WILLIAM WHITEHEAD. 

